Next up is 1999’s Election a wicked political satire about corruption and the underhanded nature of politics that just happens to be set in a High School.
It’s all about the battle between Tracy Flick and one of her teachers Mr McAllister portrayed by Reese Witherspoon in a breakout year (she had Cruel Intentions and Best Laid Plans also that year) and Matthew Broderick in quite possibly his best career performance.
The script from Alexander Payne is astute, both funny and full of twists as things spin out of control for Jim McAllister. It was part of what could be called a golden age of “teenage films” appearing in the second half of the 90s including the likes of Clueless, 10 Things I Hate About You, Drop Dead Gorgeous and more. A seemingly brief period where Hollywood acknowledged that teenagers were interested in content that didn’t underestimate them.
The film is staged fairly straightforwardly with not lot to really discuss in terms of the shot choices, mise-en-scene and the like but low key approach does let the strong characters contained within the script really shine whilst doing enough for it to not feel like a TV show.
If you made a pitch black prequel to Parks & Recreation this could easily be the early days of Leslie Knope. This is worth catching if you’ve not seen it and the themes feel as relevant as they ever were.
I’ve decided that during this period of social distancing that I’m going to start going through all the films I own, either on DVD or Blu-Ray and write up a quick summary and review for each of them.
So here we go, choosing at random first up we have;
The Aviator
Leonardo DiCaprio’s second project with Martin Scorsese is biographical film of the life of Howard Hughes. After a brief opening scene featuring a young Hughes and the root of his later germaphobia we pick up in the early twenties as Hughes works on his film Hell’s Angels having already amassed his fortune with his tool company.
We get an early sense of Hughes drive to achieve perfection unafraid to do things differently and risk everything he has as he seeks to break into Hollywood and become a power player. Alongside that we are given a sense of the charm he is also capable.
In this opening sequence we are shown the character traits that would combine to make Hughes life as unique as it was but also led to the many complications and dramas tracked by the film. In fact the completion of Hell’s Angels which takes up the first fifthteen or so minutes of The Aviator pretty much encapsulates Hughes.
We are then introduced to Cate Blanchett’s fantastic take on Katherine Hepburn which is both performance and impression. Whenever she is on screen there is a fantastic energy to everything. From here we get into Hughes’ obsession with flying and aircraft design whilst at the same time we increasingly see his neuroses building; his inability to eat from a plate anyone else has taken something from, his unease at his deafness on one side.
Moving forward as Hughes begins to compete with Pan AM, deal with senators and war orders we seen him begin to increasingly struggle with his mental health. The film’s big set piece comes as Hughes fights his case in a senate hearing having recovered himself from spending all of his time in one room.
And the dramatic climax comes as he succeeds in getting the largest wooden framed airplane ever built off the ground. We close just after this triumphant moment with an illusion towards the struggles Hughes would face with his mental health for the rest of his life.
The production is handsomely mounted with impeccable period detail throughout. The costuming is fantastic. The looks of Hepburn, Jean Harlow, Ava Gardner are spot on.
DiCaprio’s central performance following up Gangs of New York certainly showed he was more than pretty face. Here he brings out both Hughes seemingly easy confidence and the traumas of his germaphobia.
At just shy of three hours it is a little long but it’s hard to identify anything that is dead weight within the run time. If you feel like a biographical character study this is right up there and thoroughly recommended.
A modern noir story with early career performances from Josh Brolin and Reese Witherspoon, the film has it’s flaws, in particular some of the dialogue is a bit hackneyed, but it’s really interestingly structured as it twists and turns.
Opening on a night out gone wrong the film takes us back to show us how we’ve got to this point. The shifts in timeframe are smartly highlighted by the different colour palettes used, one a washed out spectrum of strong colours the other a clearer more naturalistic feel. It’s a neat device that also helps develop atmosphere of the film and events in progress.
It’s hard to talk too much about the plotting of the film without giving away moments that help drive film but there are clues present that not all might be as it is initially presented with background clues and small things like how characters react to ringing phones. Things that take on different meanings when you look back on them.
Brolin’s Bryce is a unlikeable show-off who finds himself crumbling under pressure, it’s a character that’s written not to be liked so it’s interesting that towards the end Brolin does make you feel some sympathy for him.
Alessandro Nivola doesn’t quite do enough to really bring the better sides of his character Nick, which does work against the film as you end questioning one of the key relationships in the film.
Meanwhile Reese Witherspoon shows here why she went on to forge a strong career (1999 also saw her excel in Election following turns in Cruel Intentions and Pleasantville), taking the most difficult part in the film to make work and doing an excellent job. She conveys a lot without speaking especially moving into the final third of the film.
After a couple of turns in it’s opening third the film does settle down but again as it comes to close throws in some surprising shifts that lead to a bitter sweet conclusion that I suspect will divide people on how well it works.
Aside from the colour usage the direction feels a bit like a TV drama rather than a feel apart from a few nicely framed sequences and it does have a bit of a habit of having conversation start in once location to cut to them being finished in another.
However another strong aspect is the soundtrack, both the choice of songs and the original score which from the outset sets an unsettling tone whilst also at times bringing out the sense of loss and listlessness which is at the heart of the story.
So this is Best Laid Plans, it does feel of it’s time quite strongly these days (you can imagine one key element of the story being worked differently these days) but it’s worth watch. Try not to second guess it too much and hopefully it’s surprise. The sort of smaller scale thriller you don’t see reach the cinema often anymore.
It’s on Amazon Video, Microsoft Store and iTunes (I also have a DVD a can lend out) if you want to watch it and let me know what you thought in the comments. (Definitely one easing to discuss in depth once watched!)
Last year Deadpool was held up as being something different and daring in the comic book movie genre. It used it's higher certification to ladle on the violence, nudity and crude humour but underneath that it was basically comic book film by numbers, failing totally to do anything interesting with world of possibility it's source material gave it.
Now with have Logan, another Wolverine story, another story about one of the most seen X-Men characters. Logan too has a higher certificate than the majority of comic book movies. Crucially Logan does do something different, something new with the genre.
What we have here is essentially a revisionist modern day western with a comic book background. It certainly shares elements (and even some dialogue) with the film's title it echoes, Shane. It's the tale of a reluctant fighter trying to leave a life behind but being drawn back to the violence he's trying to escape.
In amongst it there's a comedy-drama about the relationship between two men (Logan and Xavier) struggling with the realisation that their best days are behind them, in this there are echoes of the likes of Unforgiven whilst the determination to do one last thing right (and the Mexican border setting) echo the vastly under-rated The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada.
Crucially unlike Deadpool's ultra violence for the sake of it the much bloodier take on Logan's world serves a purpose. It's quite startling the first time we seen a claw clearly through a head and a limb severed but it helps to really bring home why Logan is the broken man he is. Haunted by years of this he's become a hollow man just trying to hang together long enough to get Charles somewhere away from anyone he could accidentally harm during seizures that shake the world.
A legacy that Logan has to try his best to help young Laura avoid if he can. This is sombre stuff.
Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart both do their best work as in these roles in the series and indeed both put in very strong performances all around from across their careers. Both mixing ably moments of levity in amongst introspection. One notable scene sees Jackman move from the physical comedy of unleashing his frustrations on a car, Basil Faulty style, to packing an emotional punch as you realise what's truly behind his outburst.
Likewise young Dafne Keen excels as Laura building a real sense of a child haunted by abuse but still wide eyed at a world she's not seen who slowly becomes attached to her travelling companions despite being mostly mute for a large part of the run time.
You could argue that Boyd Holbrook and Richard E. Grant's antagonists are under-developed but this is a film centered on the emotional journey of it's three leads more that it is on the tale of comic book conflict. But you do find yourself caring about a family introduced in an interluding chapter as Charles tries to show Logan what he should be striving for.
The film is beautifully shot, a mix of scorched landscapes along the border, dusty ageing interiors, washed out greys and hazy sunlight is used in the final act as the metaphor of a day coming to end comes towards it's conclusion. Sharpe contrasts, clear images bring a feeling that this is the real world not the high reality of typical comic book fare.
There is imagination in the action (and as mentioned it all serves a purpose; one scene of Logan killing paralysed & stranded men underlying where he is mentally and how desperate things are) but the heart of the film lies in the drama surrounding it.
Deadpool was labelled comic book film making for adults. It wasn't. Logan is.
So Rogue One is Star Wars with the Saving Private Ryan filter turned up. And it works.
This is a very different feeling Star Wars film and justifies the “A Star Wars Story” tag that sets it apart. Yes, the tone is darker than the other films as expected and don’t be fooled by stories of re-shoots done to lighten things. If anything the lighter material went into the trailers but not the final cut of the film. But it’s other things that set it apart.
The combat sequences are much more intense; dynamic, gritty and in a first for a Star Wars film actually quite harrowing in places. For example in an earlier sequence we witness an Imperial patrol attacked in a city street with innocent civilians very much caught in the cross fire. There are echoes of the likes of Black Hawk Down.
This is maximised in the final third as hopelessly outmatched Rebel forces on a beach sacrifice themselves to create a distraction whilst in orbit above them their colleagues mount a frantic assault to make sure it’s not in vain.
Astonishing is the best word I can think of to describe the climatic space battle, with cinematography that really places you right in the middle of the action as fighters swoop and dive around fleets of ships. It’s the best execution of this kind of action I’ve seen and is peppered with imaginative flourishes.
The strength of the action is backed up by the rest of the writing in deepening the experience. Whilst the basic story is a fairly straightforward men on a mission tale it’s the characterisation of those on the mission that make it work.
Here we get shades of grey as we see Rebels in conflict with each other over the lengths they’re prepared to go to. We’re told Forest Whitaker’s Saw Gerrera is an extremist who’s gone too far but this is after we’ve seen Diego Luna’s Cassian shoot down an unarmed colleague without pause to ensure he won’t talk upon capture.
Meanwhile Mendelsohn’s Krennic brings something different to the table as the villain. He starts with a naked ambition to rise up the Imperial rank but slowly switches to desperately fighting for his position and survival after an encounter with Darth Vader.
Felicity Jones’ Jyn is also very different to any of the heroes we’ve see in the series before. At one point when asked if she’s ok with seeing Imperial flags flying over every planet she replies “It doesn’t matter if you never look up”. She’s not in it for the cause at the start and whilst later she joins the Rebellion her main motivation is a fight for absolution for her father.
A sequence roughly half way through featuring Jyn brings all that works so well in the film together at once. We watch as Jyn witnesses a final message from her father, Jones wordlessly showing the heartbreak and new resolve in her face as at the same time the Empire demonstrate the terrifying power of their new weapon. (Something which now is probably now more impactful as it’s lower setting resembles something sill devastating but with real world familiarity).
A haunting beautiful sequence and for me the moment the film really comes together after a slightly choppy opening.
It’s true that some of the other characters in our team are sketched with out as much detail but even then it’s a different vibe to what we’ve seen before. Donnie Yen and Wen Jiang are two believers in the Force trying to hold onto their faith and Riz Ahmed’s defecting Imperial pilot is man finding himself suddenly out of his depth.
Many are comparing it to Empire Strikes Back and they are both sombre pieces but I’d argue that Rogue One is the more complex in terms of it’s characters and generally depiction of the central conflict and probably a darker film overall seeing as during a couple of parts it even effectively comes across as a horror film.
Without giving too much away the biggest issue I had with it were some moments of ‘uncanny valley’where CGI has been used to reintroduce some characters into the story. It’s striking but does have that sense of unreality to it.
I also admit I’m not sure how well it would work for people who aren’t a fan of Star Wars to start with. I believe it would still stand by itself if you approached it as a Vietnam or World War II film, I’ll be interest to see if I gauge some people’s thoughts on that.
So it seems despite the dodgy looking trailers Star Trek Beyond is a solid entry in the franchise and it seems the newly names "Kelvin timeline" films are inverting the old Star Trek film law of the even numbered entries being the good ones. This time round the first and third so far are clearly the better films and the second entry the misstep.
McCoy, Jaylah and Spock prep for action and banter.
Beyond does what Into Darkness should of done by breaking away from the old entries and being it's own thing (aside from a few nods to the original crew). It tells a stroy of it's own rather than re-hashing a previously told one and takes advantage of it's alternate versions of the classic characters.
For example here we have a Kirk (Chris Pine) who is unsure of the point of his chosen career as the films begins, whilst Spock (Zachery Quinto) struggles with his sense of duty to his now endangered people and subsequently his relationship with Uhura (Zoe Saldana).
This gives our two central characters strong story arcs to go through in the midst of the adventure whilst the rest of the crew all get a good amount to do. Unsurprisingly with Simon Pegg on writing duties Scotty gets much more to do and it's refreshing to see him strike up a friendship with newcomer Jaylah (Sofia Boutella) instead of her becoming a romantic interest for Kirk. Although I think Pegg still plays it a bit too comically broad.
Indeed Jaylah is one of the strongest elements of this entry in the series, a more than capable engineer and a spiky, lively presence for the others to bounce off. Not quite effective however is Idris Elba's villain Krall. He is revealed to have interesting background and motivation but the pieces only really fall into place in the third act and feel a little rushed. The first of the reboots probably retains the strongest of the new villains with Nero.
Worries that director Justin Lin would mean a move towards out and out action can be put aside. Of course there is action, including some imaginative sequences in space and on the ground, but the heart of the film remains the interactions of the main cast. The middle act of the film sees them paired in different combinations (Kirk & Chekov, Uhura & Sulu, Scotty & Jaylah and most enjoyably McCoy & Spock) letting all have their moments to shine.
Karl Urban once again stands out as the grumpy but steadfast McCoy amongst pretty strong performances all round apart for a minor character in Commodore Paris whose portrayl feels stilted which is shame because she's a couple of key scenes for Kirk's story arc.
No doubt some will criticise the method used by the crew to turn the tide of battle against Krall's swarm ships but I admit it was something that brought a smile to my face.
It's not as heartfelt as the series best (Wrath of Khan) but it's up there with the likes of Generations (which i think is under appreciated), Undiscovered Country, First Contact and the opening film from the re imagined crew.
It's episode three and I'm struggling to really think of an angle to really write about this episode as it's all rather a bit well bitty.
Also despite the fact we meet a few new characters everyone else continues basically doing what they've done so far. Ned is staid and moral, the King is brash, Cersei and Joffery show flashes of humanity before flipping back to hating and scheming, summing up their philosophy neatly with "Anyone who isn't us is our enemy"
We do get the first real straight forward mention of the concept of seasons that last literal years. (It does offer up quite a few questions. If a winter lasts literal years how does any plant life survive?)
It's again unclear how much time is passed when get news of Danerys pregnancy, in particular these sections suffer because there is no sense of how far the tribe has travelled. Of course most notable here is the fact that the power balance between Danerys and her brother is very starting to shift, much to his annoyance.
Of the new characters it's the former Mayor of Baltimore that is the most interesting at this stage. And yes that's how i'll know him until I actually remember his proper name. He's clearly a sneaky tricky type who for some reason feels the need to hold most of his meetings in brothels.
Arya's sword instructor is an entertaining character but is so larger than life he does feel a lit bit out of place, almost as if he's wondered in from The Princess Bride by accident.
So not a lot really comes to mind to speak about here, so it's onwards, though from memory things start to get moving again in the next instalment.
